WULF News

Hardin County Schools Tuesday night unveiled their Portrait of a Learner, a set of aspirations for what every student will know and be able to do when they graduate.

“We actually started working on Portrait of a Learner a couple of years ago in our ongoing efforts to ensure that our students have the advantages they need to succeed when they leave our district and when they graduate,” said HCS Community Relations Specialist John Wright. “We want our students to have advantages over their peers because we know that’s what’s going to land our graduates high-paying, successful jobs and careers.”

The portrait was created using feedback from district stakeholders such as faculty and staff, community members, parents, and students. The district partnered with the University of Kentucky Center for Next Generation Leadership to identify target competencies.

“Those five competencies are Responsible Citizen, Personal Champion, Engaged Learner, Effective Communicator, and Active Collaborator, and so throughout the school year and probably for the next several years, you’ll be hearing those terms used,” Wright said. “That’s kind of the foundation for what they’ll be learning in the classrooms.”

The competencies will make concrete appearances in school buildings, such as on a poster on the wall, and worked into the curriculum.

“It is our ongoing task to ensure that our students are ready for the workplace and for life outside of graduation, and we look forward to continuing this work with the community’s help and our Portrait of a Learner,” Wright said.

Visit the Hardin County Schools website for more information.

As the fall season approaches, Kentucky Farm Bureau is highlighting Certified Farm Markets across the state, including six from Hardin County that were recently added to the program.

“It was started as a fruit and vegetable marketing program to help farmers connect with the consumer audience, and it has evolved to markets all over Kentucky that sell a diverse group of agricultural products from pumpkins to apples to agritourism to greenhouses,” said Kentucky Farm Bureau Commodity Specialist Fran McCall. “You name it, we probably sell it at one of our markets.”

She says the goal of the Certified Farm Market program is to connect farmers to their communities and to help community members find local farm markets near them. For running closer to the urban side than other counties, Hardin County’s six markets is a good number.

“We see a larger following in those areas around the Louisville area,” McCall said. “We have similar numbers in Lexington, even Madisonville and Hopkins County in Western Kentucky, Bowling Green. We have a large kind of hub, as I call them, markets, but that’s not really uncommon. You have a really good offering of fall-based markets in your area.”

Kentucky Farm Bureau has more information on how to track down fall fun at Certified Farm Markets.

“You can visit our Kentucky Farm Bureau website (kyfb.com/certified), and then you can find all the markets around the state of Kentucky,” McCall said. “We have over 163. You can also follow us on Facebook, or you can download the Kentucky Farm Bureau app.”

Hardin County’s Certified Farm Markets are Fallen Maple Farm, Hinton’s Orchard and Farm Market, Sunshine and Blossoms Greenhouse, Crawford Pumpkin Patch, the Pumpkin Wagon, and Vine Grove Pumpkin Patch.

Law enforcement agencies across the state of Kentucky are continuing to deal with threats made against school districts stemming from social media.

The Elizabethtown Police Department began last week with the arrest of a juvenile that made a threat that was found to be non-credible against T.K. Stone Middle School, and ended the week with the arrest of suspects that were found to have called in a threat to the Ohio State School for the Blind. EPD Public Information Officer Chris Denham says any threat is investigated fully and perpetrators face punishment.

“Our region has been flooded with legitimate as well as non-credible threats to schools over the past couple of weeks,” Dehnam said. “I want to urge all parents and guardians to speak with their children about the seriousness of making threats. It’s not a joke, and these actions carry real consequences including arrest and detention.”

The Grayson County Sheriff’s Office says a juvenile was arrested after they made a threat against Grayson County High School, and the Vine Grove Police Department says a juvenile was arrested for making a threat against James T. Alton Middle School. Breckinridge County Schools released a statement to parents advising them to talk with their students about the use of social media platforms such as SnapChat.

Denham says if you hear or see something suspicious, say something.

“If they hear of any rumors or know of any threats, please report them immediately to their law enforcement,” Denham said “Any threats that you’re aware of that are taking place in Hardin County can also be relayed anonymously to Hardin County Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-597-8123 or by visiting p3tips.com.”

The Kentucky State Police sent out a release last week reminding residents that any threat to attack a school will be investigated as a charge of Terroristic Threatening, a felony offense.

National Child Passenger Safety Week will be observed across the country from September 15 through 21, and Governor Andy Beshear is encouraging Kentuckians to take the basic steps to protect their children when on the road. 

The governor said the state would be joining observation of the week during his Team Kentucky Update Thursday. Beshear said the annual awareness campaign encourages drivers to make sure they are using car seats properly, something the latest statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show is not always the case.

“It shows that 46 percent of car seats are being misused around the United States,” Beshear said. “I mean, think about that. We have car seats to protect our children. I think everyone wants to protect their child when they’re putting them in a car seat. That means we should really think about the fact that so many of them are being misused, and get the information out there.”

Beshear encouraged Kentuckians to talk with a NHTSA-approved expert to make sure their child is using the right seat, and to attend a car seat check up event which is typically hosted by area fire and health departments.

“To find out more about checkup events and car seat resources, visit KentuckyHighwaySafety.com and click the Safety Programs tab,” Beshear said. “Folks, this won’t take you long. It’s a couple of websites and maybe spending a few minutes at a checkup, but if 46 percent of people are misusing car seats, it might be you, and I know you want what’s best for your child.”

Beshear said on the positive side, seat belt use in Kentucky is up 3.4 percent over the last two years, and highway fatalities are down 15 percent from last year.

The United Way of Central Kentucky celebrated the kickoff of its annual fundraising campaign at the Hardin County Chamber of Commerce’s September luncheon, with United Way President and CEO Christa Shouse delivering the keynotes address and organizations that benefit from United Way support set up at the Pritchard Community Center.

Shouse said the annual campaign is about expanding resources.

“The goal, certainly, is as always to raise more money because there are so many needs out there that we don’t even get to scratch the surface of because the need is that great, but I really want to increase awareness of our presence in the community, what that means, and have more people join up with us, whether they’re giving money or they’re volunteering their time, their expertise, we need all of that,” Shouse said.

Shouse said the organization knows the community is struggling, and while that puts a strain on fundraising it makes community support even more important.

“Through our services and partnering agencies, we’ve seen a 48 percent increase in needs over the year of funding before that, and we’re also seeing fundraising go down, and I think it’s just indicative of the climate we’re in right now,” Shouse said. “People are struggling and we see that, and so we’re here to help make a difference.”

The United Way says services from organizations that rely on United Way support benefited more than 60,000 residents across five counties last year. Shouse said the money raised in the campaign has a direct impact.

“One of the best things that we can boast is that it stays here,” Shouse said. “People want to know where their money goes and I’m here to tell you it stays here, and we’re very open and transparent about what we do with those dollars.”

Visit www.unitedwayck.org or contact the United Way of Central Kentucky to learn more.